


Legacy of Words

by Azzure



Category: Tales of Xillia
Genre: Chimeriad bonding, Gen, Presa and Agria make brief appearances towards the end
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-17
Updated: 2018-09-17
Packaged: 2019-07-13 10:31:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,168
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16016066
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Azzure/pseuds/Azzure
Summary: Wingul discovers one of his colleagues delving into a part of himself he never intended to share, but finds that perhaps there is more use for it than he realized, and some traditions are best to let die.





	Legacy of Words

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by a few personal headcanons, and also the need for more Chimeriad interactions. All Long Dau phrases are translated at the end.  
> I hope you enjoy~

“Dun’fun’mud … Fiilus …”

Wingul exited his room, pausing in the hallway, various folders and files in his arms as he caught wind of the low muttering that echoed from further down the hall. The words weren’t spoken in Rieze Maxian, but a questionable attempt at something more familiar. Which was odd, since this wing was supposed to be empty except for a select few chosen by his Highness, and at the current time that meant that only two of the rooms were actually filled. Frowning, he made his way towards the other occupied room further down the hall. It wasn’t logical to think this was the source; Jiao certainly didn’t speak Long Dau, nor was there any need for him to learn.

“Etitiewak... No, that’s not right. Mmm, how does he pronounce that?”

He stopped outside the door, frown deepening. That was Jiao’s voice alright, and that language was unmistakably Long Dau, crude and mispronounced as it was; he’d recognize it anywhere. Quietly leaning forward, he peeked around the door frame.

Jiao was seated at the desk, hunched over with his back to the door and his voice reduced to a frustrated hum, as Wingul heard the sound of pages flipping furiously. Leaning back and stepping away, Wingul scowled, silently contemplating the situation.

When had all this started? He clearly had a system going, a dedicated practice space, and by the sounds of it the materials to assist. Where had he gotten them anyway? It wasn’t as though the library would have had any sort of collection considering the language’s limited usage and the fact it was strictly spoken. He had assembled a few materials himself over the years, but he would have been noticed if they’d gone missing. And just how long had he been at this? He hadn’t noticed any extreme changes in Jiao’s schedule, though it was hard to pin down the man exactly with all the trips he made back and forth between here and Xian Du, but still, nothing stuck out as unusual aside from-

He paused, the thought suddenly hitting him. A memory from several weeks back: he’d come back from the library late in the evening and seen a light on down the hall in Jiao’s room. It had struck him as odd at the time, considering the man was supposed to be making a trip back the following morning, but he’d brushed it off as nothing and ignored it. Thinking back on it now, however, he’d seen evidence of other late-night sessions like that as well on days when they’d been busy. Perhaps Jiao hadn’t made any obvious changes and was instead just fitting them in where he could.

He thought about dropping it then and there and just returning to his room, but found he couldn’t. He was too invested now; it simply didn’t sit right with him. There wasn’t a reason that he could find to satisfy him. He had to know why.

“Fudiun’mud …”

Wingul scowled, his pronunciation was terrible; that wasn’t remotely close to how you said it. He resisted the urge to burst in with the correction, instead tucking his files under his arm and taking a long, deep, composing breath, before shoving open the door. “Jiao!”

Thanks to his abrupt entrance, he watched as the man immediately went stiff, and the sounds of papers moving echoed from the desk. It would seem as though he was trying to hide something.

“Ah, Wingul.” Jiao shifted around in his chair, looking ever so slightly frazzled, “What can I do for you?”

“I apologize for interrupting.” He made his way across the room, noticing Jiao’s unease as he moved closer. “But I need to go over something with you.”

“I see.” Jiao turned back to desk, gathering the papers and books into a stack in his arms, “Let me move these so we have some space and-”

He was interrupted by several of the items slipping out of his hands and scattering onto the floor, one object in particular catching Wingul’s immediate interest. “What’s this?”

Jiao went a bit pale as Wingul set his files on the now empty desk and made direct eye contact with the man, leaning down to pick up the dictionary off the ground. Jiao remained stiff and frozen as he turned it over in his hand, looking it over before collecting several pages and examining the obvious attempts at Long Dau translations with as little expression as he could manage.

Jiao, realizing he’d been caught, carefully deposited the remains of the stack beside the desk before he sunk into the chair, burying his head in his hands. “…I see you knew.”

Wingul didn’t respond, collecting the remaining papers and setting them and the dictionary down in the middle of the desk, perching himself on the edge, his expression now a frown. “You do realize that this language was only spoken by the elites of my tribe, yes? Not just anyone was granted permission to learn it.”

Jiao glanced up immediately, his expression shifting to one of shocked guilt. “I-I had no idea. If I’d known I wouldn’t have…” His gaze broke away and again he refused to meet Wingul’s eyes. “I apologize.”

Still frowning, Wingul crossed his arms over his chest, his gaze shifting to the scribbled notes and worn dictionary sitting exposed on the desk. “What’s your interest in my language anyways?”

Jiao gave a heavy sigh, one hand absently turning one of the buttons on his coat. “I thought it might be beneficial on the battlefield.”

Wingul raised an eyebrow, “What do you mean?”

“When you use your booster on the battlefield, only Gaius can understand what you’re saying. I thought that if I could at least understand… well, translating would be one less thing his Highness would have to worry about, and if there was ever a situation where he wasn’t around…” Wingul’s frown deepened as he pushed off the desk and started pacing, Jiao’s gaze remained directed at the floor. “…But it would seem it was a ridiculous idea.”

“Perhaps.” He didn’t notice his companion glance over, instead continuing to pace with his thoughts back and forth across the room. Jiao did bring up a fair point. Having fought only by Gaius’s side or on his own for so long, it hadn’t occurred to him that his new partner couldn’t understand any advice he’d throw out on the battlefield while under his booster's effects. It was a strategic disadvantage to be sure, and even more so if his actions had been adding extra work on his Highness. That thought alone was enough to make his blood start to boil a bit. “An’ saiold aenun’ seud situn’tiaumug! ”

Jiao’s gaze snapped over at the sound of the outburst, but he quickly looked away again.

“Why didn’t you approach me for assistance with this?” Muffling most of his irritation, Wingul stopped his pacing, staring intently at Jiao until the man finally met his eyes.

“I didn’t wish to disturb you, with your schedule already so busy. And after I consulted Gaius and he’d provided me with the materials, I thought…” His voice trailed off as he noticed the frown slowly growing again on Wingul’s face “…I might be able to figure it out myself.”

“Gaius,” He nodded towards the desk, “is how you obtained those?”

Jiao glanced back momentarily before nodding reluctantly. “Well, the notes are my own, but the dictionary was his addition.”

Turning away, he buried his face in his hands with a groan. So even Gaius had realized this problem before he did, and this was the solution he’d arrived at… “Si tiaus us yaiodi bausa Arst? ”

The crinkling of papers brought him back to reality, and he looked over to see Jiao collecting the pages of his Long Dau notes and tucking them inside the dictionary. He gazed at the pages almost sadly before his expression became more determined, and he turned around, offering the book. Wingul stared at it, slightly puzzled. “What are you doing?”

“This language is yours, I apologize for any offense I caused in learning it without your permission.”

Wingul eyed the book and pages, his thoughts racing. By all accounts he shouldn’t even be considering this: It was bad enough that he’d taught Gaius, but Jiao was neither of his tribe nor his superior. But he was an equal, and he had been the one to see the problem where Wingul himself hadn’t. He wouldn’t be able to keep secrets as easily anymore, not that many secrets got past Jiao in the first place, regardless of what language they were spoken in, but it also wouldn’t be the worst thing to have another person he could rant to without having to watch what language he was speaking. His eyes narrowed and eyebrows knitted together as he stared at the dictionary. Perhaps tradition said that Long Dau was only to be passed to the elites of his tribe, but his tribe was dead, and if Gaius had taught him anything it was that some traditions were meant to be broken.

After a moment of careful contemplation, he reached out, immediately pushing the offered book back in Jiao’s direction. “Keep it.”

The large man raised an eyebrow, his mouth opening in surprise. “You’re sure?”

“Of course, how else are you supposed to continue learning?”

He was amused to see that response caught Jiao rather off guard, “…You’re alright with me continuing?”

“If his highness has approved of it, who am I to argue? Though also provided you agree to let me assist you, to speed up the process and address your horrible pronunciation.”

His partner still looked reluctant, however, and Wingul sighed, offering his hand. “An’lup tun’ bould e mun’ba lun’gewaya, Jiao. Lun’ti os bould Gaius baidild. ”

A slow smile spread across Jiao’s face, and, gripping Wingul’s hand firmly, the two exchanged a firm handshake. “Very well.”

As the grip dropped away, Wingul raised an eyebrow and glanced up at him with a smirk. “You didn’t understand a word I just said, did you.”

Jiao laughed, the sound loud and hearty. “I did not, no. But I will learn, and someday you’ll have to repeat that to me again.”

Wingul hummed in amusement, making his way over to the desk to pick up his files before heading back towards the door. “We’ll see.” Reaching the doorway, he glanced back to see Jiao setting the book back on the desk, a relieved smile on his face as he gazed at it. “Oh, and Jiao-” The man looked over as Wingul grinned ever so slightly, “Its pronounced fudiun’mud .”

* * *

“Remind me again why I have to bother with this?” Agria glared over at him, tossing her pencil down on the page half filled with scribbles. “Why can’t you just speak normally in battle so we can all understand you? You do it fine the rest of the time.”

Wingul glanced up at her over the top of his book. “Yaio di miti lun’edim, yaoi baull miti omdudun’distiemud. ”

He returned his gaze to the pages of his book, as Presa cackled from where she sat next to Agria at the table and Agria’s expression twisted into a confused scowl. “What’s going on?” She turned to stare first at Presa but then at Jiao, who sat beside Wingul across the room, attempting but failing to hide the smile on his face. “What’d he say?”

“Don’t tell her.” Wingul didn’t bother to look up his time, flipping another page and letting his voice be muffled by the book.

“I wasn’t going to.” There was a jolly tone to Jiao’s voice as Agria glared sourly at both of them before returning to the page in front of her with loud grumbling.  
Wingul glanced up briefly to watch Presa lean over, pointing out mistakes in Agria’s scribbles and earning a snarky snap from the younger girl in exchange. From the corner of his eye he noticed Jiao lean in closer, a big grin still spread across his face, though his voice was quiet.

“So how’s this for a legacy?”

Wingul shrugged, his response coming out as a mumble. “It’s certainly not what I was expecting.”

The man hummed, “Do you regret your choice then?”

Wingul sighed, finally setting his book aside and folding his arms over his chest, his attention focused on the scene in front of them. “I never said that.”

“I can’t say I imagine your ancestors would have approved.”

Wingul snorted, “You think I care what they think? If they wanted it left the way it was then they shouldn’t have left it to me.” He met Jiao’s gaze from the corner of his eye, his mouth twisting up into a partial smile. “U baull waaiisun’ baai spun’ekus uti emud ban’ baull sodin’ Gaius dudin’etus edin’ din’tun’tubun’din’d. ”

“A fine legacy indeed my fudiun’mud ”

Wingul wrinkled his nose in vague disgust, “You still insist on pronouncing it like that.”

Jiao smiled, “As a reminder.”

“Please stop.”

He hummed in amusement, “We’ll see.”

**Author's Note:**

> Long Dau Translations  
> Dun’fun’mud= Defend  
> Fiilus= Fools  
> Etitiewak= Attack  
> Fudiun’mud= Friend  
> An’ saiold aenun’ seud situn’tiaumug!= He should have said something!  
> Si tiaus us yaiodi bausa Arst?= So this is your wish then, Arst?  
> An’lup tun’ bould e mun’ba lun’gewaya, Jiao. Lun’ti os bould Gaius baidild.= Help me create a new legacy for Long Dau, Jiao. Let us build Gaius’s world together.  
> Yaio di miti lun’edim, yaoi baull miti omdudun’distiemud.= You don’t have to learn if you don’t wish to, but you won’t be able to understand when I talk about you then.  
> U baull waaiisun’ baai spun’ekus uti emud, ban’ baull sodin’ Gaius dudin’etus edin’ din’tun’tubun’din’d.= Long Dau is my language now, I’ll say who can speak it and we will use it to make Gaius’s dreams a reality to be remembered.


End file.
